Latest reviews

Beth Threlfall reviewed: Making a mosaic with slate

"This was my first time working with mosaics, and I loved it - the slate is so beautiful and I had no idea there were so many varieties of it. The conservatory was a great place to be working in, with so much natural light, and Rachel is an excellent teacher and very informative and encouraging. I enjoyed the session a great deal and am sure I'll do more of this."

Judy reviewed: Glass fusing private class - fun taster class for beginners

"I thoroughly enjoyed my first two hour session making a pendant, a Christmas decoration and a sun catcher and was delighted with the result. I was more confident with a second session and had more of a plan of what I wanted to do. Sarah was so helpful and accommodating without "taking over". I made a larger sun catcher which sits beautifully in a small round window and some more Christmas decorations which are so simple to do and very effective. I would heartily recommend this course to anyone - it is great fun!"

Lisa reviewed: Needlefelting workshop at Dalkeith Country Park

"The needle felting workshop with Jo was great. Really nice, relaxing and great fun. Brilliant to learn something new and Jo was a great teacher and friendly host. Would definitely recommend giving the workshop a try."

Penelope Land reviewed: Introduction to screen printing

"I enjoyed a really good day with Ria. A real bonus having limited numbers on the course. I'd never attempted screen printing and did have difficulty pushing my fine art to one side to enjoy the freedom of printing. Ria is very friendly and a good tutor, it was a day of friendly chat and banter."

Olwen Swan reviewed: Lakeland Landscape - gouache & mixed media at Cowshed Creative in the Lake District National Park

"Really enjoyed my day at Watercolour Landscape at The Cowshed, wonderful place. Karen made the course so interesting and she so was very helpful. Can't knit or sew now with my fingers, but found I could manage the painting. New interest for me now. Thank you Karen and also George for her lovely home made food. Regards,Olwen Swan."

Cowshed Creative responded:

"Delighted you have found a new hobby and thank you for such lovely comments."

Hilary Quick reviewed: Highland stool making course - Scottish Highlands

"What a wonderful couple of days! Relaxing, challenging, satisfying, sociable, and I'm so chuffed with the end product! Aaron's careful guidance at each stage makes it all within anyone's grasp."

Linda reviewed: ‘Winter dream ' wool painting face-to-face textile art course in Worcestershire

"This course was perfect. I really enjoyed every minute of it. Raya is a knowledgeable tutor and a talented artist who inspires you to create fantastic work. I am so pleased with my painting what I completed within 5 hours! I recommend this course to everyone! Thank you Raya. I will be back again!"

Claire Morgan reviewed: Glass fusion workshop, Cardiff, Wales

"I booked the fused glass workshop as a birthday treat for my son and mother in law. We are all different ages and this was the most enjoyable day for us all. Cathy is informative, patient and very inspirational. Its thoroughly absorbing and the most wonderful way to spend a day. The workshop is small but has everything you require to be as creative as possible. My son had the most challenging design idea but with Cathy's expertise and patience he has the most incredible piece of glass artwork very unique to him."

Glass By Design responded:

"The work produced by yourselves was unique & diverse! The 'trainer' was challenging as an interpretation in glass but the results are amazing. Well done all. See you soon"

Mags Lyddiatt reviewed: Introduction to green wood furniture making - two days

"The green furniture making course surpassed all my expectations – I learnt so much. Peter is a great teacher, very encouraging and has endless patience and Lulu was a huge help too. We learnt how to use a selection of woodworking tools and turned logs into tables and stools – unbelievable in two days. We were all very pleased and proud of our final achievements and took home our work. It was an absolutely fabulous way to spend the weekend in a beautiful location. Thank you very much Peter and Lulu."

Caroline Cobbing reviewed: 'Art of Stained Glass' - Oldbury, Birmingham

"Thank you for a brilliant day with good company. I found the talk about your work fascinating and really enjoyed making my stained glass panel. It is now hanging up in the kitchen and has been admired by family and friends."

Ally Noble reviewed: maltese limestone carving at mount pleasant gardens

"A brilliant weekend trying stone carving for the first time. A relaxed course with plenty of guidance when required. Andrew provided help with design and all the different tools we used, plus the best way to get a good finish on the piece. I have something I am proud to display. The gardens are beautiful too, with a meadow, shady areas, perennials, Japanese garden, tree ferns and a sculpture trail. Highly recommended. We will be back."

Jenny Harding reviewed: Modern calligraphy (full day workshop) - Hampshire

"Very nice day, lots of useful information. Maybe a little too much going on for me, always trying to keep up it seems. I am probably better with a shorter more structured class. Still an enjoyable day though thanks."

Elaine reviewed: Upholstery course - bring your own project

"So pleased I found Polly's upholstery course. Polly knows her subject and shares her knowledge well - excellent teacher, very supportive. My project was just a bit of a challenge so didn't manage to complete over the two days but feel confident that I will be able to carry on with it on my own. There is so much to learn about upholstery, I am looking forward to returning at some point with a different style chair. Food etc. all good. The Studio is a lovely atmosphere for learning - Thank you Elaine"

Tanya Venture reviewed: An Introduction to Green wood craft (spoons spatulas and other things!)

"It was a really excellent day in a lovely setting, with a lovely dog and endless cups of tea! Phil was a great teacher and very good at recommending tools if we wanted to carry on carving at home. I really enjoyed making all of the different items. It was great having the freedom towards the end of the day to keep working on one of our current pieces or trying to have another go at something we had already made. I would definitely recommend to anyone interested in woodcraft or just in a nice day outside in the woods."

Gaynor Twigg reviewed: Stained glass with artist Patricia Lee - as seen on BBC1 Home Is Where The Art Is

"Excellent tuition delivered in an interesting and friendly way. Lovely homemade lunch too - perfect."

Chris reviewed: Stained glass for beginners | Lead lights

"I really enjoyed the whole course, all the different processes we followed and coming out at the end with a piece to remember my whole experience. David was a great teacher, informative, helpful and very friendly. 10 / 10 for me."

Excellent Tutor and value - highly recommend! reviewed: Make your very own Tote bag

"I attended Richard's 'make your own tote bag' workshop earlier this year and I cannot commend him enough. He is very knowledgeable, and takes the time to explain processes thoroughly. The workshop takes place in an outhouse at the back of his property, which has been kitted out with all the materials and tools needed. His workshop is small enough for you get 1 on 1 guidance, which means you get way more out of the workshop than those hosting groups of 10+. I highly recommend booking one of Richard's workshops; they're great value and you'll get a beautifully crafted piece to take away :)"

Elizabeth Thompson reviewed: Lakeland Landscape - gouache & mixed media at Cowshed Creative in the Lake District National Park

"Throughly enjoyed the day. Venue is of the highest quality, Lunch was all homemade and delicious. I was a complete beginner doing watercolours. Karen was very patient and I learnt a lot of techniques. Hopefully this will be the start of a new hobby! Thanks again George and Karen for a lovely day!"

Cowshed Creative responded:

"Thanks so much for your lovely comments and hope to see you again."

Shruti reviewed: Beginner sewing machine course - learn to love your machine!

"Very good experience! Emily is a good tutor, she explained all the elements of my sewing machine. Really enjoyed my day with her and liked making my cushion cover with her. She has a flexible approach and helped me make the cushion cover giving me confidence all along. I finished the class feeling knowledgeable about my machine and excited to use it more frequently. Thank you Emily for this lovely experience."

Izzy reviewed: Upholstery course - bring your own project

"Excellent course - learnt a lot - more to upholstery than I thought and if a job's worth doing, it's worth doing properly you need patience and knowledge (experience in time of course). We learnt how to feed the wood, coax the materials and be patient for the end result. Polly is an excellent teacher and a walking encyclopedia of upholstery knowledge (and very patient with her students). Don't overestimate how much you will get done, it's a slow thorough process but the end result is worth it. Food was good too - definitely recommend this course."

Joe Wenman reviewed: Taster pottery throwing lesson (various dates)

"Excellent day with family doing a taster pottery session at Loam. I will highly recommend this day to anyone wanting a similar experience. Thanks Jack!"

Jen reviewed: An Introduction to Green wood craft (spoons spatulas and other things!)

"Phil is a patient and excellent teacher. Over the course of the day, he lead us through making a butter knife, spatula, spoon and 'gypsy flowers', focusing on both learning the key skills and producing something worthwhile to take home with us. I'd highly recommend the course if you have any interest in exploring greenwood crafts."

melanie Weston reviewed: Glass fusing private class - fun taster class for beginners

"My sister, her daughter and granddaughter were visiting Worcester for the week so we teamed up with my daughter too and booked the pottery & glass workshop day. This is the first time we had all done anything like this and our ages varied from 56 down to 11. We couldn't have booked a more suitable and fabulous day for us all!! We all thoroughly enjoyed both the glass making and the pottery. We particularly enjoyed the lunch too! Wow! Delicious! One of our party is gluten free and Sarah and Chris were happy to accommodate this. I can seriously recommend this day for anyone who wants to try something new. I'm collecting our creations this week and very excited to see how they all turned out. Thank you Chris and Sarah for your patience and talents. Well worth the money."

Marion reviewed: Fused Glass - Taster

"I did one of Julie's taster sessions a few months ago (apologies for taking so long to review it!). I'm not a crafty/arty person at all and didn't really believe I'd be able to produce anything worth putting in the kiln. But Julie is a great teacher, very helpful and relaxed with lots of ideas to help anyone stuck for inspiration. It was a very enjoyable afternoon and I was delighted with the 2 coasters I made. I really recommend trying one of Julie's courses, whatever your ability level. Thanks Julie!"

Michiel reviewed: 2 Day Leather Practical Skills Workshop

"We did the two day leather workshop and it was a real delight. Richard is very patient and clearly explains what you need to do. He gives you a lot of inside info regarding leather and where to get it, what to look out for etc. I can really recommend doing this workshop if you have an interest in leather craft."